Plastic Waste Polluting The Environment
"White pollution garbage" is a visual term used by people to refer to the pollution of the environment caused by difficult-to-degrade plastic waste (often referring to plastic bags). It refers to the phenomenon where various types of household plastic products made of polymer compounds such as polystyrene, polypropylene, and polyvinyl chloride are discarded as solid waste after use. Due to being thrown randomly and difficult to degrade, they cause serious pollution to the urban environment. So now it is advocated to use less or no biodegradable plastic packaging materials, and it is best to bring your own tools or use biodegradable plastic bags when purchasing things.
Visual hazard refers to the damage of waste plastic products scattered in the environment to the city's appearance and landscape. The scattered waste plastics in big cities, tourist areas, water bodies, and railway lines bring negative visual stimulation to people, seriously damaging the city's appearance and landscape. Especially in the railway industry, due to poor management, passengers casually throw used lunch boxes out of the window, and even train attendants throw garbage outside the train, causing the green plants on both sides of the main transportation line to turn white, and the trees and branches along the way to hang in clusters.
1. Harm to the human body: Using disposable foam plastic tableware may cause cancer, as well as have immune suppression, reproductive toxicity, and endocrine toxicity. The raw material for producing foamed plastic products is polystyrene, and the foaming agent used is Freon. In addition to pollution issues, it also contains dioxins and other toxic substances. When the temperature exceeds 65 ℃, some toxins and dioxins will precipitate and seep into food, causing damage to the liver, kidneys, reproductive system, and central nervous system. Eating hot food packaged in foam food boxes is equivalent to consuming toxins such as dioxins.
2. Harm to soil: Non degradable plastic products entering the soil can affect the transfer of matter and heat, as well as the growth of microorganisms, and alter the characteristics of the soil. As household waste enters landfills or is scattered in fields and enters the soil, waste plastic products mixed in the soil affect the absorption of nutrients and water by crops, leading to reduced crop yields. This includes the plastic film left in the soil after use. The plastic film used in farmland will break and remain in the field after aging, and will not decompose or decay. Destroying land structure, hindering plant absorption of water and root growth, and affecting crop yields. According to the survey, if each acre of land contains 3.9 kilograms of residual film, it can reduce corn production by 11% to 23% and wheat production by 9% to 16%, and this pollution is difficult to eliminate.
3. Harm to animals: Waste plastic bags discarded on the ground and water are easily ingested as food by animals such as fish, horses, cows, and sheep. Plastic bags cannot be digested in the animal's intestines, leading to damage and death of the gastrointestinal muscles. This phenomenon is not uncommon in zoos, pastoral areas, rural areas, and oceans. Some antelopes and giraffes at Beijing Zoo accidentally ingest plastic bags to cause illness, and there have also been incidents of "national treasure" giant pandas dying from ingesting plastic bags.
4. Harm to the ocean: The pollution of the ocean caused by discarded plastics has become an international problem. The plastic waste dumped into the ocean not only endangers the survival of marine life, but also causes maritime accidents due to entanglement with the propellers of ships.
